Jimmy Kimmel responded to President Trump’s Truth Social rant by offering him a special deal.
Trump called Kimmel a “bum” with “NO TALENT,” calling for ABC to “get the bum off the air!!!” The Wednesday night post came two months after Trump celebrated Kimmel’s temporary pre-empting from ABC, a move allegedly made in response to pressure from Trump’s FCC chairman.
“You tried to get me fired in September, and it didn’t work!” Kimmel told Trump.
Kimmel joked that he admired Trump’s “tenacity,” and offered the president a deal: “How about this: I’ll go when you go, OK?”
“Let’s ride off into the sunset together like Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid,” Kimmel said. “And until then, if I may borrow a phrase from you: Quiet, piggy.”
Kimmel also responded to Trump’s Truth Social tirade by pointing out the time he posted it:
“12:49 AM, 11 minutes after the show ended on the East Coast,” Kimmel noted. “Which is nice. He watches us live.”
“Hi, Mr. President,” Kimmel said with a wave. “Thanks for watching us on TV instead of on YouTube... It’s viewers like you who keep us on the air.”
Kimmel added, “I have honestly lost count now of how many times the president has demanded I be pulled off the air. I mean, talk about a snowflake, this guy. Every five weeks, he flips out and wants me fired.”
Kimmel covered Trump’s other apparent attempts to punish TV hosts he didn’t like:
“He’s been trying to get Seth Meyers fired,” Kimmel said. He quoted a report from The Guardian alleging that Trump is hoping to get CNN hosts Brianna Keilar and Erin Burnett fired, too.
“He thinks this is some kind of Choose Your Own News Anchor situation,” Kimmel joked. “He wants every channel to be Newsmax.”
